Prisoners flee as wardens watch soccer

Prisoners flee as wardens watch soccer

JAKARTA: Forty-eight prisoners escaped from the Pekanbaru prison in Riau province while guards were engrossed in Brazil's World Cup match with Belgium, police said on Tuesday.

The Pekanbaru Police said the breakout occurred shortly before the end of the first half of Monday's match, which Brazil won 2-0 on second-half goals. Fifteen of the escaped convicts have been recaptured, said Pekanbaru Police chief Lt. Col. Pandiangan.

He said the guards were "inattentive" because they were watching the match.

Pandiangan did not explain how the inmates managed to escape.

Soccer enjoys great popularity in Indonesia and World Cup matches are widely watched on television. --AP